VIDEO: Mercedes-Benz E-Class commercial features malfunctioning car
The voiceover for Mercedes' "Ignite" commercial for the new E-Class starts with "It is, quite simply, the most advanced automobile we have every created." However, during the start-up sequence before that voiceover, the actual commercial begins with a warning light: when the driver turns the car on, the message "Front Right SRS Malfunction Service Required" appears in the dash – not the type of message you expect to see when your car fires up and does its system check. Still, knowing how these things work, we suspect this commercial was probably filmed early on in a pre-production prototype with an inactive airbag – a common enough occurrence with these sorts of vehicles.
In any case, to watch the commercial and check out Mercedes' official response to the flub, hit the jump. Hat tip to Wai.
UPDATE: Mercedes-Benz USA blocked access to video of the commercial on YouTube, but they didn't get rid of all the copies. Follow the jump for a salvaged excerpt of the commercial.
Gallery: 2010 Mercedes-Benz E-Class
[Source: YouTube, Mercedes-Benz]
"During the filming of our latest E Class television advert, the vehicle was significantly altered to create an environment conducive to filming the interior of the vehicle. As is typical in such a situation, doors and seats were removed and a number of features de-activated in order to allow the camera rig access. The vehicle's safety sensors performed exactly as they should and activated a warning signal indicating a disruption of the vehicle's Supplemental Restraint System.
"The fact that the image -- which is visible only in a frame by frame review of the ad i.e. not by the naked eye -- was not edited out of the advertisement was an oversight and has subsequently been corrected.
"The E Class is the most tested car we have ever launched and reaches the highest quality levels we have ever produced.
"While this is a mistake in the editing process it is in no way a reflection on the quality or durability of the E-Class"
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 6)
jaguar879 5:11PM (7/13/2009)
Huh, I had an ML350 that frequently had the exact same problem...
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Blackstar 5:28PM (7/13/2009)
It's a feature. ;)
Just hope they last as long as my '86 190E 2.3.
23 years old and still running. (knock on wood)
Jeff 9:20PM (7/13/2009)
Strange video. You hear the car starting, but the pic shows ignition on, but car NOT running!
the4thheat 10:53PM (7/13/2009)
I remember one time when I borrowed someone's S-Class and after starting up the car that little display just kept flipping through like a bazillion messages about everything from the windshield wiper fluid needing to be refilled to the car needing service for one thing or another, a couple were actual problems with the car, but there were also a bunch of different "TAKE ME IN FOR SERVICE AT YOUR MERCEDES DEALER" type messages.
Was not really good for my impression of Mercedes, that's all I can say.
blair 7:25PM (7/15/2009)
what about the grammar - i mean - im not really a stickler, but the second sentence in this article says (and i quote because they do))"The voiceover for Mercedes' "Ignite" commercial for the new E-Class starts with "It is, quite simply, the most advanced automobile we have every created." - shouldn't that be "we have EVER created" - geez?????
bobcat7_7 11:20PM (7/22/2009)
whoever wrote this is an idiot!!! i am a tech for mercedes and it says the seats were removed.... that would explain why the airbag light was on in the dash... because the seats werent in the car and the airbag connectors were unplugged!!!!
whoever wrote this article was an ignorant pos!!!
1337 5:15PM (7/13/2009)
Mercedes is just trying to give a representative look at what it's like to own one of their cars.
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MPL 8:52PM (7/13/2009)
It's true that they had their problems with early ML's and '03 - '05 E-Classes and some minor problems that no automaker is exempt from. However, to discount a brand that builds the safest and most technologically advanced vehicles in the world is idiotic. Quite frankly, the cost of innovation is that there will be some hiccups in production electronics and you'll either accept that, or you'll buy a re-badged Toyota that was reverse engineered from the patents that M-B left open.
1337 10:12PM (7/13/2009)
I have an '02 C-class. The S-class generally gets all the new tech, and it takes a few years for it to trickle down to the E and the C.
Despite my meticulous maintenance, the C-class always thinks the door is ajar, the trunk is open, and/or the oil is low. I do like my C-class, but it is not without faults.
With this in mind, a Mercedes advertisement that lacks a malfunctioning dashboard would be pretty misleading.
the4thheat 10:56PM (7/13/2009)
Indeed, the ad does say "THIS IS THE NINTH GENERATION E-CLASS-THIS IS MERCEDES BENZ" so clearly they were just trying to be as accurate as possible. Bravo advertising agency, bravo.
audi_arena 12:46PM (7/14/2009)
ROFL.
My father's 2003 C-Class was flat out the worst car he had ever owned. He's now been behind the wheel of his A5 for 14 months with zero issues...
...well, once he couldn't figure out where the "eject" button was on his CD player... (right next to the slot) freakin old people...
Aloysius Vampa 5:15PM (7/13/2009)
...
Wow.
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James 5:16PM (7/13/2009)
wtf!
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tankd0g 5:17PM (7/13/2009)
Nice catch but I wouldn't be surprised if it lights up all the warnings in the startup self test.
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obie 5:29PM (7/13/2009)
That's not the problem--the problem is the message in the instrument cluster that reads "Front Right SRS Malfunction Service Required." At first I was thinking the same thing you were though.
zamafir 5:35PM (7/13/2009)
Lol, well, maybe the new mercs cycle through all the available problems, just to prepare the driver for the eventuality. It only takes a minute or two :).
tankd0g 5:41PM (7/13/2009)
it would be even funnier if it was because it deployed during filming.
anonymous j 10:17PM (7/13/2009)
yes zamafir, because we all know how perfect German cars are and that the problems people complain about are merely "perceived" right?
/sarcasm
Eric 5:17PM (7/13/2009)
Not going to lie...my mother's E class has had a malfunction message on her dash since the first week. Dealer was never able to fix it.
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Taglane 5:23PM (7/13/2009)
So if you get too close to a car on the freeway, bam pow- brakes locked and rear end mangled. suhweet.
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